Miami Dolphins notebook: Fins raise $600k for charity; Jake Long the best at his craft; Vince Young, Terrelle Pryor, Sean Smith, more
Good afternoon! Hope everyone has gotten over the disappointment of the Heat losing to the Mavs in the NBA Finals.
A few Dolphins related items to get you through your Monday:
1. Dolphins raise over $600,000 for their foundation.
Nice job by the team the past few days at FinsWeekend, raising money for the Miami Dolphins Foundation with celebrity fishing and golfing tournaments, among other activities. The dollar number is impressive given that the player turnout wasn’t quite as good this year because of the NFL lockout.
The proceeds of the weekend go toward providing and supporting signature education, health, youth athletic programs and volunteer activities that inspire and engage communities throughout Florida. The winning golf team in the scramble was captained by Chad Henne, while Roberto Wallace’s team finished second.
“We are so fortunate to have so many people that volunteer their time and take a leadership role in generating funds for the Miami Dolphins foundation,” Dolphins CEO Mike Dee said in a statement. “This raises money for us to provide the financial basis for us to do things in the community throughout the year. This puts us in a position to fulfill the commitment we have to make a difference in the community.”
Also over the weekend, fullback Lousaka Polite was named the 2010 winner of the team’s Nat Moore Community Service Award. He is the first back-to-back winner of the award since Bryan Cox did it in 1994-95.
In football news, we mainly discovered that the Dolphins’ players are optimistic about the pace of the labor talks and the potential to have a deal before the season begins in August.
2. Jake Long is really good.
Of course, you already knew that. But the behind-the-numbers website Pro Football Focus just released a study of offensive tackles, and Long, the former No. 1 overall draft pick, was rated by the site as the best pass-blocking left tackle in football.
Not a bad showing by Long, especially given the left shoulder injury he suffered in Week 11, which he subsequently played with the rest of the year.
PFF also studied right tackles, and rated Vernon Carey as the 15th-best. Now, the rankings are a bit subjective, but the sentiment is accurate – Carey was about a league-average tackle in 2010.
3. Vince Young to Miami?
ESPN’s John Clayton views it as a good fit in his most recent column.
“While I don’t think he can emerge as an elite quarterback, I do think he would be a good signing for the Miami Dolphins. He can compete against Chad Henne in a running offense, which suits Young’s style.”
Clayton is correct in that Young performs his best in a running offense. But it’s hard to imagine the Dolphins’ brass, feeling pressure to win this year after two straight 7-9 seasons, pinning their hopes to the enigmatic Young, who has been a head case on and off the field throughout his five-year career.
4. Terrelle Pryor signs with Drew Rosenhaus
And will likely enter the NFL’s supplemental draft, to be held sometime in July, lockout or no.
It is not clear if Pryor will want to play QB, or will be open to a position switch. If he sticks to QB, it’s hard to imagine the Dolphins using even a 7th-round pick on him.
5. Sean Smith talks lockout in Utah.
Smith and former Utah Ute teammate Eric Weddle are both in Salt Lake City now to run a youth football camp. Both were in studio last night at KSL to talk about the camp and life in the lockout. Weddle, an impending free agent, jokes that he might take his talents to South Beach.
Video Courtesy of KSL.com
6. Photo of the Day
2004: Two future Miami Dolphins first-round picks battle it out: Auburn’s Ronnie Brown plows over Tennessee’s Jason Allen for a touchdown. Courtesy Mobile Press-Register.
